Chapter Five, Section Two
Drafting the Constitution (pgs. 140 – 144)
Nationalists Strengthen the Government
 Shays’ Rebellion – term for the farmers’ protests in the fall of 1786 in a response
to too much taxation.
o Panic throughout the nation because farmers were in serious debt
o The new nation’s reputation was on the line….
 “What a triumph for our enemies…to find that we are incapable of
governing ourselves.” (G. Washington)
 The central government was too weak and changes had to be made
Call for Convention
 Big problem for nation: Trade between the states
o Argument was over the taxes & navigation rights
o James Madison & Alexander Hamilton called a meeting to discuss
interstate trade
 Only 5 of the 13 states sent reps to the convention in Annapolis,
Maryland
 Delegates decided to have another meeting the next year in Philly
 Shays’ Rebellion took place and that resulted in 12 states coming
to this one in Philly
Convention Highlights
 May, 1787 – All delegates, but Rhode Island were present at the Philadelphia
State House (Independence Hall) and the windows were closed
 Most were rich and of course male, and about 35-40 years old (lawyers,
merchants)
 G. Washington was elected presiding officer unanimously
Conflict Leads to Compromise
 Within 5 days, it was decided to give up trying to change the Articles of
Confederation, and they decided to form a new government
Big States vs. Small States
 Fair representation to all sizes of states was necessary
 Two proposals:
o Madison’s Virginia Plan – A two-house legislature, with membership
based on population. The voters would elect the reps to the lower house,
and then those reps would elect members to the upper house
o Paterson’s New Jersey Plan – A single house congress in which each state
had an equal vote
 The delegates were deadlocked on the two proposals
 Roger Sherman – delegate and political leader from Connecticut suggested the
Great Compromise
Great Compromise – A two-house Congress to satisfy both small and big states. Each
state would have equal representation in the Senate (the upper house). The population of
each state would determine its representation in the House of Representatives (the lower
house). Voters of each state would elect the House of Reps and the state legislatures
would choose the members of the Senate
 Satisfied both sides
Slavery-Related Issues
 So now came the issue of whether slaves should be factored into the population
 The North didn’t want to count slaves because it would give the South an obvious
advantage in representation. Naturally, the South was for it.
 Result: Three-Fifths Compromise – three-fifths (60%) of a state’s slaves could be
counted towards the population
 Economics of slavery still unsettled
 Resolution: Congress was given the power to regulate trade with foreign
countries, but they wouldn’t even touch slavery issues for at least 20 years
 Not everyone agreed with this resolution (James Madison)
Creating a New Government
 Power was divided between the states and the national government
 National government was divided into three branches:
Division of Powers
 Powers granted to the national government by the Constitution are delegated
powers, or ENUMERATED powers.
o Examples on p. 143
 Powers kept by the states were called reserved powers.
o Examples on p. 143
 Shared powers included the abilities to tax, borrow money, establish courts, and
pay debts
Separation of Powers
 While the delegates gave the national government some exclusive powers, they
were also quick to make sure there was a system of checks and balances in place
 Three branches: Judicial, Legislative, Executive
 Judicial – interprets the law
 Legislative – makes the law
 Executive – carries out the law
 Examples of some of the checks and balances: While the president has lots of
power, the Senate has to approve some of the president’s decisions. (See other
ones on pages 143-44)
 The procedure for electing the first president focused on two major concerns:
o No national political parties & travel & communication were obviously
limited (there would be lots of regional winners)

o Upper class did not trust the lower class – too uneducated to make such an
important decision and feared they would elect another lower class man
Solution: Each state would choose a number of electors equal to the number of
senators and representatives the state had in Congress. The electoral college (the
group of electors chosen by the states) would cast ballots for the candidates
Creating the Constitution
 An amendment process was also made to allow for change, if necessary, over the
years.
 It took about 4 months to create this flexible, living document, but on September
17, 1787, the Constitution of the US was sent to the Congress, which submitted it
to the states for approval
 Up next: Ratifying the Constitution